Is Sheraton owned by Marriott?

Yes. Sheraton is a wholly owned brand of Marriott International, acquired through the September 2016 purchase of Starwood Hotels and Resorts for $13.6 billion. Individual hotels are typically owned by third-party investors and operated under Marriott management agreements.

Is Sheraton publicly traded?

No. Sheraton is a brand, not a listed company. Its owner, Marriott International, trades on the NASDAQ under the ticker MAR.

When was Sheraton founded?

Ernest Henderson and Robert Lowell Moore founded the Sheraton System in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1937. The name came from a Boston hotel they acquired whose Sheraton signage was too costly to replace.

Who founded Sheraton?

Ernest Henderson and Robert Lowell Moore founded Sheraton in 1937 and built it through Depression-era property acquisitions. ITT acquired it in 1968, Starwood in 1998, and Marriott in 2016.

What is Sheraton's market position?

Sheraton is a premium full-service brand with approximately 450 hotels in more than 70 countries. It competes with Hilton, Hyatt Regency, and InterContinental, with particular strength in Asia Pacific where its long history established strong name recognition.

What is the Sheraton transformation program?

Marriott launched a multi-year effort after 2016 to reposition Sheraton, removing underperforming hotels and redesigning the brand around community gathering spaces. It is the largest brand revitalization in company history, addressing inconsistencies that developed under prior ownership.

Travel & Hospitality

Who Owns Sheraton?

Sheraton is a premium hotel brand owned by Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR). Founded in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1937, Sheraton became part of Marriott through the 2016 acquisition of Starwood Hotels and Resorts. The brand operates approximately 450 hotels and resorts in more than 70 countries and is completing a multi-year global transformation.

Parent Company

Marriott International

Acquired

2016

Status

Publicly Traded

Headquarters

Bethesda, Maryland, USA

Sheraton Timeline

1927

Marriott International

Parent company established in Bethesda, Maryland, USA

Company Founded

1937

Sheraton

Founded by Ernest Henderson, Robert Lowell Moore

Founded

2016

Acquired by Marriott International

Marriott International acquired Sheraton

Acquired

premiumpremiumGlobalOfficial Website

Who Owns Sheraton?

Parent Company: Marriott International
Ownership Type: Wholly owned
Acquisition Year: 2016
Company Type: Publicly Traded
Stock Ticker: NASDAQ: MAR

Brand	Parent Company	Ownership Type
Sheraton	Marriott International	Wholly owned

History of Sheraton

Founded: 1937
Founders: Ernest Henderson, Robert Lowell Moore
Acquired by Marriott International: 2016

Ernest Henderson and Robert Lowell Moore founded the Sheraton System in 1937 in Springfield, Massachusetts, after acquiring a hotel called the Sheraton in Boston, a name too expensive to change from the building's signage. They expanded through strategic property purchases during the Depression, becoming one of the first hotel chains to pursue corporate growth rather than family ownership.

Sheraton became the first hotel chain listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1947. The company expanded aggressively through the 1950s and 1960s across North America and internationally, pioneering conventions including the first electronic reservation system, Reservatron, and the first toll-free reservation number.

ITT Corporation acquired Sheraton in 1968, forming ITT Sheraton, and expanded the portfolio internationally through the conglomerate era. The Sheraton name grew into one of the most recognized in global hospitality, particularly strong in Asia where it was among the first Western brands in China: the Sheraton Beijing opened in 1985 as one of the first international hotels in the country.

Starwood acquired ITT Sheraton in 1998. Under Starwood, Sheraton's position drifted as the company developed newer lifestyle brands like W and Aloft, and by the early 2010s the brand carried an aging, inconsistent portfolio that Starwood itself acknowledged needed revitalization.

Marriott inherited that challenge in 2016. The company launched a Sheraton transformation program that removed underperforming properties, redesigned the brand's public spaces around community and productivity, and repositioned it as a contemporary premium brand. The multi-year effort continued through the 2020s, with new flagship openings in key markets and design standards applied across renovations.

As of 2026, Sheraton operates approximately 450 properties, down from its peak but repositioned with a modernized identity anchored in its founding role as a gathering place.

About Marriott International

What does Marriott International own?
Marriott International owns over 30 hotel brands including The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, W Hotels, JW Marriott, Marriott Hotels, Sheraton, Westin, Courtyard, Fairfield, Residence Inn, Moxy, and City Express by Marriott. The company operates approximately 9,500 properties in 140-plus countries and territories. However, Marriott owns very few of the physical hotel buildings. Approximately 99% of properties are managed or franchised for third-party owners. Marriott also owns the Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program with over 230 million members.

Is Marriott International publicly traded?
Yes, Marriott International, Inc. is listed on NASDAQ under the ticker MAR. The company has been publicly traded since 1953. The Marriott family retains a significant but non-controlling ownership stake. Major institutional shareholders include Vanguard Group, BlackRock, and State Street. The company has a single-class share structure with one vote per share.

Who founded Marriott International?
Marriott was founded by J. Willard Marriott and his wife Alice Marriott, who opened a root beer stand in Washington, D.C. in 1927. The company entered the hotel business in 1957 with the Twin Bridges Motor Hotel in Arlington, Virginia. J. Willard Marriott handed leadership to his son Bill Marriott in 1972. Marriott International was created in 1993 when Marriott Corporation split into Marriott International (hotels) and Host Marriott (real estate).

Where is Marriott International headquartered?
Marriott International is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, near Washington, D.C. The company's global headquarters is located at 7750 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland. The company operates approximately 9,500 properties in 140-plus countries and territories worldwide.

How many hotels does Marriott operate?
As of 2025, Marriott operates approximately 9,500 properties with over 1.7 million rooms across 140-plus countries and territories. The company has a development pipeline of approximately 3,800 properties and 590,000 rooms, representing significant future growth. Over half of the development pipeline is in international markets.

What is Marriott Bonvoy?
Marriott Bonvoy is Marriott International's loyalty program, with over 230 million members as of 2025. The program was formed in 2019 by merging Marriott Rewards, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards, and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) following the 2016 Starwood acquisition. Members earn points on stays at Marriott properties, which can be redeemed for free nights, room upgrades, and other benefits. The program also includes co-branded credit cards with JPMorgan Chase and American Express.

Who is the CEO of Marriott International?
Anthony Capuano is the President and CEO of Marriott International, a position he has held since February 2021. He succeeded Arne Sorenson, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in February 2021. Capuano had been with Marriott for over 25 years before becoming CEO. The board of directors is chaired by David Marriott, grandson of founder J. Willard Marriott.

Founded: 1927
Headquarters: Bethesda, Maryland, USA
Company Type: Publicly Traded
Stock: NASDAQ: MAR
Revenue: $25.5 billion (FY2025, calendar year ended December 31, 2025)
Employees: Approximately 425,000

Visit Marriott International website

View full company profile for Marriott International

Where Is Sheraton Made / Based?

Headquarters: Bethesda, Maryland, USA

Sheraton Categories & Tags

Hotels Full Service Hotels Business Travel Marriott Hospitality

Sheraton Sustainability & Ethics

Sheraton operates under Marriott International's Serve360 sustainability platform, which commits the parent company to net-zero emissions by 2050. Properties implement Marriott's energy, water, and waste standards, including the transition from single-use toiletry bottles to larger dispensers.

The brand holds no independent sustainability certification at the brand level. Marriott publishes an annual sustainability report covering all brands with third-party-verified emissions data.

Sheraton Recalls & Controversies

Sheraton was part of the Starwood system affected by the data breach disclosed by Marriott in 2018, which exposed approximately 339 million guest records from the Starwood reservation database. The consequences included a UK ICO fine of approximately $23.8 million, a 2024 FTC settlement requiring a 20-year security program, and a $52 million multistate payment.

The brand's transformation also generated friction with some franchise owners required to fund renovations or exit the system, a common but documented tension in large-scale hotel brand repositioning.

Sheraton Ownership: Pros & Cons

Advantages

+Nearly 90 years of global brand recognition, strongest in Asia
+Marriott invested in the largest brand transformation in its history
+Bonvoy loyalty integration supports occupancy across 230 million members
+Asset-light model provides consistent refreshed brand standards
+Premium positioning captures corporate and group travel

Considerations

-Legacy property inconsistency persists despite transformation
-Starwood-era data breach affected guest trust and triggered penalties
-Overlaps with flagship Marriott brand in the same segment
-Third-party ownership limits control over renovation pace
-Name recognition exceeds physical product quality in some markets

Frequently Asked Questions About Sheraton

Sources & Further Reading

Competitors to Sheraton

These competing brands operate in the same categories and provide similar products or services. Compare key attributes to understand market positioning and competitive landscape.

Brand	Parent Company	Country	Founded	Market Position	Primary Market	Gender Target
Marriott HotelsSister Brand	Marriott International	USA	1957	Premium	Global	All Genders
Courtyard by MarriottSister Brand	Marriott International	USA	1983	Mass market	Global	All Genders
Protea Hotels by MarriottSister Brand	Marriott International	South Africa	1984	Mass market	Regional	All Genders
WestinSister Brand	Marriott International	USA	1930	Premium	Global	All Genders
Delta Hotels by MarriottSister Brand	Marriott International	USA	1962	Premium	Global	All Genders
Fairfield by MarriottSister Brand	Marriott International	USA	1987	Mass market	Global	All Genders